Apparatus for altering the width, weight and thickness of fabric webs

ABSTRACT

A plurality of disks, mounted on a rotatable shaft, each having a plurality of spaced apart flexible protuberances extending radially out from the perimeter thereof. Each disk is composed of two concentric rings - the innermost ring being attached to the rotatable shaft by means of two swivel pins that are mounted on the shaft directly opposite each other, thereby facilitating the free arcuate movement in a horizontal plane of the ring about the shaft, while the outermost ring is mounted on two swivel points that are positioned on the perimeter of the inner ring at 90* from the swivel pins, thereby facilitating the free, arcuate movement in a vertical plane of the inner ring about the shaft and producing a gyroscopic movement of the disk about the shaft. Guiding means are provided to orient the disks in a diverging or converging manner as desired, via the swivel pins and swivel points. A web of fabric, moving into the disks on the converging side thereof, is then engaged by the flexible protuberances and drawn along divergent lines so as to increase the width of the web while decreasing the thickness thereof. The thickness, uniformity, weight and the width of the web can be accurately controlled by simply varying the angle of divergence of the individual disks.

United States Patent [191 Tautvaisas APPARATUS FOR ALTERING THE WIDTH,

WEIGHT AND THICKNESS OF FABRIC [58] Field of Search 19/161 R, 81, 155;26/63, 26/58; 226/193, 196

[ 56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,709,282 5/1955 Lindel etal.., 19/161 R 3,303,547 2/1967 Kalwaites 19/161 R X FOREIGN PATENTS 0RAPPLICATIONS 469,500 12/1928 Germany l9/8l Primary Examiner-DorseyNewton Attorney, Agent, or FirmEdward J. Scahill, Jr.

[451 May 7, 1974 [57] ABSTRACT A plurality of disks, mounted on arotatable shaft, each having a plurality of spaced apart flexibleprotuberances extending radially out from the perimeter thereof. Eachdisk is composed of two concentric rings the innermost ring beingattached to the rotatable shaft by means of two swivel pins that aremounted on the shaft directly oppositeeach other, thereby facilitatingthe free arcuate movement in a horizontal plane of the ring about theshaft, while the outermost ring is mounted on two swivel points that arepositioned on the perimeter of the inner ring at 90 from the swivelpins, thereby facilitating the free, arcuate movement in a verticalplane of the inner ring about the shaft and producing a gyroscopicmovement of the disk about the shaft. Guiding means are provided toorient the disks in a diverging or converging manner as desired, via theswivel pins and swivel points. A web of fabric, moving into the disks onthe converging side thereof, is then engaged by the flexibleprotuberances and drawn along divergent lines so as to increase thewidth of the web while decreasing the thickness thereof. The thickness,uniformity, weight and the width of the web can be accurately controlledby simply varying the angle of divergence of the individual disks.

6 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEDHAY 7 1974 3L808Q639 sum 1 nr- 2APPARATUS FOR ALTERING THE WIDTH, WEIGHT AND THICKNESS OF FABRIC WEBSBACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an apparatus foraltering the width and thickness of fabric webs, and more particularly,to an apparatus for increasing the width of a web of nonwoven fabricswhile decreasing its weight and thickness.

In the manufacture of nonwoven fabrics, a web of tibers formed by acarding action, from raw material laps or the like, is continuouslypassed through various processes, such as bonding steps or the like, toultimately form the desired end product. However, since the processesused in the manufacture of nonwovens today generally produce rawmaterial laps of rather standardized dimensions, it has become somewhatof a problem to vary. this width during subsequent processing steps forpurposes of efficiency, or simply to obtain a particular web width. Forexample, many variations of a machine having a stretchable carrierportion thereon have been used for this purpose, wherein the web isstretched or widened, over or across, the stretchable carrier portion ofthe machine. However, such types of apparatus are subject to breakdownthrough the constant stress and strain being put thereon, and also,these machines are slow and lack ease of control of the width of thewebs coming out therefrom.

Another type of apparatus that has been used for this purposeis amachine, such as described in US. Pat. No. 2,709,282, having a pluralityof disks mounted on a grooved stationary shaft with the rigidly fixeddisks being oriented along the divergent lines, defined by the grooves.Each disk has a plurality of needles affixed to the outer peripherythereof that pierce a web of fibers and-stretch the web as it is carriedalong the divergent lines. The individual disks have openings thereon,and a bar extends through the aligned openings on the disks and isconnected at its opposite ends to a pair of gears which are freelymounted on the stationary shaft for rotation thereabout. The disks arerotated in this manner to pierce the web as described above and carrysame along the divergent lines formed by the thusly grooved shaft. Thistype of machine suffers a number of drawbacks. For example, theneedlepiercing members produce unwanted holes in the web that adverselyaffect the strength of the web; also, in order for widths of the web tobe varied in such an apparatus, whole new sets of disks and shafts mustbe tooled and grooved accordingly to replace the disks and shaft in themachine at that time (an expensive and time consuming project, at best).Additionally, the individual disks may not be moved or altered once theyare mounted within the grooves on the shaft.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an improvedapparatus for altering the width, weight and thickness of a nonwovenfabric web.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatusthat can be economically adjusted to increase or decrease the width ofthe fabric web while decreasing or increasing the thickness thereof,respectively.

It is a further object of the instant invention to provide an apparatusfor altering the width and thickness of a nonwoven fabric, whileproducing a uniform weight distribution across the width of the fabric,without having such apparatus cause holes to appear on the alterednonwoven fabric.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An improved apparatus for altering the width,weight and thickness of fabric webs comprises a plurality of disksmounted on a rotatable shaft, each disk having a plurality of spacedapart flexible protuberances extending radially out from the perimeterthereof. The perimeter of each disk is capable of a gimbaled orgyroscopic type movement about the shaft. Each disk may include aninnermost ring that is attached to the rotatable shaft by means of twoswivel pins that are mounted on the shaft directly opposite each other,thereby facilitating the free, arcuate movement in a horizontal plane ofthe ring about the shaft, and an outermost ring .that is mounted on twoswivel points positioned opposite each other on the perimeter of theinner ring at from the swivel pins, thereby facilitating the freearcuate movement in a vertical plane of the outer. ring about the shaft.The disks are oriented in'a diverging manner, away from an oncoming web,to increase the width of the web. Once oriented in a particular manner,the disks are held in that position by a guiding means, such as aninexpensive board of a self-lubricating plastic material having teethcut out thereon in a manner much like a comb, each cut out portionthereof being at a particular'desired angle that produces a particulardesired degree of divergence, and subsequent width increase in thenonwoven fabric. Using the same shaft and disks, the amount ofstretching at a particular point can be altered by simply orienting thedisks differently by means of other guiding board orientations. A web offabric moving into the disks on the converged side of the disks, is thenengaged by the flexible protuberances thereon and gently drawn alongdivergent lines so as to increase the width of the web, while decreasingthe thickness thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a perspective view of theweb altering apparatus of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial elevational view of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a disk mounted on a shaft, as used in thisinvention;

. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the guidingboard or comb shown in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a plan view of another embodiment of a disk as described inthis invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. I shows the apparatus ofthis invention where-in a web of fibers 11 for producing nonwovenfabrics is carried, by means of a conveyer 12 or the like, onto arotating set of disks [3 attached to a rotatable power driven shaft 14on asupporting means. The disks 13 are oriented in a diverging directionaway from the conveyer 12 that carries the web to be stretched, and areheld in that position by a guiding means, such as guide boards 15 and 16of a plastic material.

The angle of divergence of each disk can be controlled individuallybecause the disks 13 are mounted on the rotatable shaft 14 by means of atwo-stage hinged arrangement capable of a gyroscopic or gimbaledmovement, wherein a first or inner ring 17 is attached to the shaft 14with a pair of swivel pins 19 that extend from the shaft at 180 fromeach other and that permit this ring and an outer ring attached theretoto swing arcuately back and forth in a horizontal plane on the shaft 14(See arrow A in FIG. 3). A second or outer ring 18 is then fitted ontoswivel points 21 located on the perimeter of the inner ring 17 at 90from each swivel pin 19, the outer ring 18 having two apertures on theinner rim thereof at 180 from each other for accepting the swivel points21 thereby facilitating the free arcuate movement of the disk in avertical plane (See arrow B in FIG. 3). For the purpose of thisinvention, the terms swivel points" and swivel pins" describeball-bearing types of structures, however, any construction isacceptable that will permit the relatively free arcuate movement of aplane about an axis, such as is shown in the drawings. Such a diskdesign advantageously permits the perimeter of the disks 13 to be freelyswung, in a gyroscopic manner, through a wide spectrum of diverging andconverging lines through a 360 revolution of the disks.

On the perimeter of the disks 13 are a plurality of spaced apartflexible protuberances 22, extending radially outward therefrom. Theseprotuberances 22, rotating on the disks l3 driven in a clockwise manner,gently engage an oncoming web of fibers 11 and carry it forward, alongdiverging lines that causes the width of the web to be increased whilesimultaneously decreasing the thickness thereof. A take-off roller 23then assists in removing the web 11 from the disks l3 and depositing itonto a second conveyer system 24 to be forwarded for further processingas desired.

The mode of operation ofthe apparatus of this invention can perhaps bebetter understood by reference to FlGS.'2 and 3 of the drawings whereinthe rotatably driven shaft 14 carries the plurality of disks 13 along adivergent direction as shown by the arrow thereon. The angle ofdivergence is set and maintained by means of guide boards and 16, whichare shown herein in the shape of a comb, at the front and back portionsof the disks 13.

The individual teeth such as at 15a and 16a of the guide combs 15 and 16respectively, can be positioned at a slightly different angle from theother teeth thereon, so as to position the disk held therebetween at adifferent angle of divergence than the remaining disks. This capabilityadvantageously helps to prevent the appearance of weak-spots in thestretched web. For example, it may be observed during a trial run, thata particular portion of the web is stretched to a higher degree than isdesired, and this may be prevented by simply changing the angle ofdivergence of the particular teeth guiding the problem disk or disks,thereby giving less stretch so that area or more stretch to an adjacentarea. The guide combs 15 and 16 are advantageously made ofaself-lubricating plastic material, such as a high molecular weightpolyethylene, that will not unduly produce friction upon contact withthe rotating disks 13. However, it should be noted that nearly any typeof durable material could be used for this purpose. Of course, thedesign for the guide comb could be such that the angles of the teethcould be adjusted on an individual basis by techniques known to thoseskilled in the art.

The gimbaled mechanism of the disks on the shaft can be seen in FIG. 2,wherein all disks 13 were initially put on the shaft 14 so that they satin a plane perpendicular to the shaft. The disks 13 were then convergedat one end and held in that position by guide comb 16 at that end, andby guide comb 15 at the resultant divergent end of the disks. When thedisks 13 are drawn together in this manner, it can be seen that theinner rings 17 of the disks are all inclined towards the center of thearrangement. However, it should also be ob served that this novelswivel-type disk can be completely reversed by simply changing the guidecomb angles. In this manner, a web of fabric can be made more narrow andconsequently thicker and heavier, if such a characteristic is desired inthe web.

Another method of controlling the thickness and uniformity of the web isby controlling the spacing of the flexible protuberances on the outerperimeter of the disks 13. For example, FIG. 2 shows the two end diskson each side as having many more protuberances 13 thereon than the otherdisks mounted on the shaft 14, which was done to prevent a curling ofthe outer edges of the web that may occur when each disk 13 in the setuphas the same number of protuberances 22. The extra protuberances on theouter disks also aid in assuring that the on-coming web is grabbedproperly by the protuberances when the spreading operation starts. Thenumber of protuberances 22 of other individual disks may also be vairedif it is determined that this is beneficial. For example, it may beobserved that a portion of the web is being stretched too much, or notenough, and the number of protuberances 22 may be increased or decreasedrespectively to achieve the desired web uniformity. It should beemphasized that the greater the number of protuberances on the disks,the greater the amount of uniform stretching occurring on the web, andconsequently the greater degree of uniformity of weight distributionacross the entire width of the stretched web.

When all of the disks have the same diameter, they produce a convexcurve from end to end when viewed from above, see FIG. 2. This may causesome problems when the web is picked up by, and/or taken off from, theflexible protuberances 22, since the rim speeds at the various locationsare different because the radii of rotation of the disks are different.Furthermore, since the web will not land on all the disks at the sameinstant, it will take a while for the web to be picked up by the outerdisks, possibly allowing it to flap loosely, causing scalloped edges,loss of spreadability and lack of uniform weight distribution across thewidth of the web. This problem can be avoided at least two ways. Forexample, the size of the outer disks can be of an increasing diameter soas to form a substantially straight line when the disks are viewed fromabove. In this manner, the web can be picked up by, and taken off from,all of the disks at substantially the same time. FIG. 5 shows analternative to making larger disks wherein extension fingers 41 havingflexible protuberances 42 thereon are mounted on the rim of the disk 43so as to increase its effective diameter. At least two thuslyconstructed disks can be used to form a substantially straight line forthe disks when they are viewed from above, thereby enabling the web tobe uniformly and simultaneously engaged by the disks.

Still another technique for controlling the width and thickness of theweb using the novel apparatus of this invention is to simply control thepoint at which the web is put on the rotating disks. This can beachieved by simply introducing the web to the disks at a higher positionthereon than heretofore described herein so that the web will be removedfrom the disks before it has been stretched to its maximum possiblewidth. However, this technique only affects the width and thickness ofthe web, and not necessarily its uniformity.

The protuberances 22 should advantageously be of flexible material thatwill not pierce or break through the web, but will, rather, gentlyengage the web and carry it forward with gentle stretching motion.Neoprene 70, a trademark for a synthetic rubber material sold by duPont, is preferred herein for this purpose, but other rubber,rubber-like, or non-rigid plastic materials will work with similar,although possibly somewhat less desirable, results.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the guide comb, wherein the comb 31has arm-like extensions 33 at approximately 45 angles from the slotsbehind each of the teeth 32. This structure prevents loose or extraneouspieces of the web from falling between the disks and possibly jammingthe apparatus.

A preferred apparatus arrangement for increasing the width of a 40 inchweb to approximately 100 inches would be as follows: a metal rotatableshaft of approximately 8 inches diameter has 43 disks mounted thereon,each disk being approximately 6 feet in diameter and being attached tothe shaft by the swivel-type joints described herein. The disks areplaced along the shaft at l inch intervals, each disk being parallel tothe next adjacent one and perpendicular to the horizontal plane of theshaft. Flexible Neoprene 70 protuberances, less than an inch in height,extend radially out of the perimeter of each disk at 6 inch intervalsfrom each other, while the two disks at each outer end of thearrangement have protuberances extending radially outward therefrom at 2inch intervals from each other so as to prevent curling at the outeredge of the stretched web. Guide combs are then provided that cause thedisks to converge at the pick-up portion of the apparatus, keeping eachdisk 1 inch from each adjacent disk at that end, while causing the disksto be kept 2.5 inches from each other at the most diverging portion ofthe disks. In this manner, a 40 inchwide web will be increased in widthby 2.5 times, or to approximately 100 inches.

It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that manymodifications and changes can be made herein without departing from thespirit or scope of the present invention. It is therefore intended thatthis invention be limited only by the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for altering the width and thickness of a web of fabriccomprising: a rotatable shaft mounted on a supporting means; a pluralityof spaced apart disks each of said disks being affixed to said shaft bya swivel means for permitting the arcuate movement thereof in a planeabout said shaft in a gyroscopic manner; a plurality of spaced apartflexible protuberances disposed on, and extending radially outward from,the perimeter of each of said disks; guiding means positioned in workingrelation with each of said disks for orienting the disks throughdiverging and converging lines through a 360 revolution of each of saiddisks; and power means for rotating said shaft and said plurality ofdisks in such a mannerso as to cause an oncoming'web offabric to begently engaged by said flexible protuberances on said plurality ofdisks, and carried forward along the oriented lines established by saidguiding means.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said swivel means includes spacedapart pairs of swivel pins that extend radially out from said shaft at180 from each other onto which is attached an inner ring within each ofsaid disks having two swivel points thereon that are disposed withinapertures on the inner rim portion of each of said disks, said swivel.points being at angles to said swivel pins; and said guiding meansincludes at least one board of self-lubricating material having aplurality of spaced apart teeth thereon wherein the direction of each ofsaid disks is oriented by a pair of said spaced apart teeth.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said flexible pro tuberances are ofNeoprene 70, and each of said protuberances on the two end disks on eachend of said shaft are spaced at 2 inch intervals from each other, andsaid protuberances on each of said remaining disks are spaced at 6 inchintervals from each other; and said plurality of spaced apart disks onsaid shaft comprising 43 disks spaced 1.75 inches from each other, saiddisks are oriented in a diverging manner away from the oncoming web soas to be spaced at 1 inch intervals from each other at the mostconvergent point thereon, and said disks are spaced at 2.5 inchintervals from each other at the most divergent point thereon.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said protuberances on at least twoof said disks are disposed on extension fingers attached to the outerrim of said at least two disks.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said guiding means includes aplurality of arm-like extensions protruding out from said board atapproximately .45 angles therewith, said extensions being disposedbehind said spaced apart teeth.

6. An apparatus for increasing the width of a web 0 fabric comprising: arotatable shaft mounted on a supporting means; a plurality of disks,each of said disks being affixed to said shaft by a swivel means forpermitting the arcuate movement of each of said disks about said shaftin a gyroscopic manner, each of said disks having a diameter ofapproximately 6 feet and being disposed on said shaft at l.75 inchintervals from each other, said swivel means including spaced apartpairs of swivel pins that extend radially out from said shaft at fromeach other onto which is attached an inner ring within each of said diskhaving two swivel points thereon that are disposed within apertures onthe inner rim portion of each of said disk, said swivel points being at90 angles to said swivel pins; a plurality of flexible rubberizedprotuberances disposed on, and radially extending outward from, theperimeter of each of said disks, said protuberances being spaced at 2inch intervals from each other on at least the two end disks on each endof said shaft, and being spaced at 6 inch intervals from each other onthe remaining disks; at least one guide board of high molecular weightpolyethylene positioned in working relation with said disks, said boardhaving a plurality of spaced apart teeth thereon, each of said disksbeing held between a pair of said teeth so as to cause said plurality ofdisks to be oriented in a diverging manner; and power means for rotatingsaid shaft and said plurality of disks in such a manner as to cause anon-coming web of fabric to be gently engaged by said protuberances onsaid disks, and carried forward along the diverging lines established bysaid guide board.

1. An apparatus for altering the width and thickness of a web of fabriccomprising: a rotatable shaft mounted on a supporting means; a pluralityof spaced apart disks each of said disks being affixed to said shaft bya swivel means for permitting the arcuate movement thereof in a planeabout said shaft in a gyroscopic manner; a plurality of spaced apartflexible protuberances disposed on, and extending radially outward from,the perimeter of each of said disks; guiding means positioned in workingrelation with each of said disks for orienting the disks throughdiverging and converging lines through a 360* revolution of each of saiddisks; and power means for rotating said shaft and said plurality ofdisks in such a manner so as to cause an on-coming web of fabric to begently engaged by said flexible protuberances on said plurality ofdisks, and carried forward along the oriented lines established by saidguiding means.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said swivel meansincludes spaced apart pairs of swivel pins that extend radially out fromsaid shaft at 180* from each other onto which is attached an inner ringwithin each of said disks having two swivel points thereon that aredisposed within apertures on the inner rim portion of each of saiddisks, said swivel points being at 90* angles to said swivel pins; andsaid guiding means includes at least one board of self-lubricatingmaterial having a plurality of spaced apart teeth thereon wherein thedirection of each of said disks is oriented by a pair of said spacedapart teeth.
 3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said flexibleprotuberances are of Neoprene 70, and each of said protuberances on thetwo end disks on each end of said shaft are spaced at 2 inch intervalsfrom each other, and said protuberances on each of said remaining disksare spaced at 6 inch intervals from each other; and said plurality ofspaced apart disks on said shaft comprising 43 diSks spaced 1.75 inchesfrom each other, said disks are oriented in a diverging manner away fromthe on-coming web so as to be spaced at 1 inch intervals from each otherat the most convergent point thereon, and said disks are spaced at 2.5inch intervals from each other at the most divergent point thereon. 4.The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said protuberances on at least two ofsaid disks are disposed on extension fingers attached to the outer rimof said at least two disks.
 5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein saidguiding means includes a plurality of arm-like extensions protruding outfrom said board at approximately 45* angles therewith, said extensionsbeing disposed behind said spaced apart teeth.
 6. An apparatus forincreasing the width of a web of fabric comprising: a rotatable shaftmounted on a supporting means; a plurality of disks, each of said disksbeing affixed to said shaft by a swivel means for permitting the arcuatemovement of each of said disks about said shaft in a gyroscopic manner,each of said disks having a diameter of approximately 6 feet and beingdisposed on said shaft at 1.75 inch intervals from each other, saidswivel means including spaced apart pairs of swivel pins that extendradially out from said shaft at 180* from each other onto which isattached an inner ring within each of said disk having two swivel pointsthereon that are disposed within apertures on the inner rim portion ofeach of said disk, said swivel points being at 90* angles to said swivelpins; a plurality of flexible rubberized protuberances disposed on, andradially extending outward from, the perimeter of each of said disks,said protuberances being spaced at 2 inch intervals from each other onat least the two end disks on each end of said shaft, and being spacedat 6 inch intervals from each other on the remaining disks; at least oneguide board of high molecular weight polyethylene positioned in workingrelation with said disks, said board having a plurality of spaced apartteeth thereon, each of said disks being held between a pair of saidteeth so as to cause said plurality of disks to be oriented in adiverging manner; and power means for rotating said shaft and saidplurality of disks in such a manner as to cause an on-coming web offabric to be gently engaged by said protuberances on said disks, andcarried forward along the diverging lines established by said guideboard.